Relationships rhetoric a good start

Catholic Welfare Australia endorses the sentiments expressed today by the Parliamentary Secretary for Family and Community Services, Mr Ross Cameron, highlighting the essential role that relationships play in fostering healthy family dynamics and building a strong society.  These sentiments need to be backed up with an injection of funds into family services which have historically been way down the list of priorities when funding dollars are dished out.

As the largest provider of relationship education services in this country, Catholic Welfare Australia is extremely pleased to see that the Federal Government is giving priority to building, maintaining and caring for relationships.

“To date, the value of relationships has not been something that Federal Governments have really focused on,” said the National Director of Catholic Welfare Australia, Mr Toby O’Connor.  “It would be hoped that a boost in priority would also equate to a boost in funding for family relationships services.”

“In our experience, most people view relationships to be a bit like breathing,” said Mr O’Connor.  “It is something that you just expect will happen naturally and automatically. It is only when something goes wrong that you give it a second thought.  So, a push by the Federal Government in getting relationships off to a good start and maintaining them at that level is definitely a positive approach.”

“In this time of economic constraint, we have been working with Mr Cameron to consider how the relatively small number of dollars made available to Family Services can best be spent,” said Mr O’Connor.  “As a result of our discussions with Mr Cameron – as part of the Family Relationships Forum – a Discussion Paper recommending changes to current Family Relationships Services funding will be released in the next few weeks.”